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Winnie and Wilbur Meet Santa
Winnie and Wilbur Meet Santa (ISBN 9780192747372) is a Christmas-themed children's fantasy picture book of twenty-four pages. It was written by the Australian-born author Valerie Thomas and illustrated by the Zimbabwean-born artist Korky Paul. It was first published by Oxford University Press in the United Kingdom in 2016. It is the seventeenth title in the Winnie and Wilbur picture book series that began with the publication of Winnie the Witch in 1987. The story centers around a good witch named Winnie and her big black cat named Wilbur. On Christmas Eve, Santa Claus gets stuck in the chimney of Winnie the Witch's house for some time. As a result, he gets behind schedule in his task of delivering presents. When Winnie eventually frees him, he asks her to help him deliver the rest of the gifts. Plot On Friday 13 December, Winnie the Witch and her cat Wilbur write letters to Santa Claus. Wilbur asks for a long list of presents, making Winnie worry that he is being greedy. Winnie asks only for a "lovely surprise". She says that she does not mind what she gets as long as it is a "lovely surprise'. At night on Christmas Eve, Winnie and Wilbur are awoken by cries for help. Going downstairs, they see Santa Claus' legs dangling at the top of the fireplace because he has become stuck in the chimney. Winnie uses her magic to free Santa Claus. Since he was stuck in the chimney for some time before Winnie woke up, Santa Claus has fallen behind schedule. He asks Winnie if she will help him to deliver the rest of his presents. Winnie gladly agrees and takes Wilbur with her. Santa Claus leaves Winnie and Wilbur's presents at their house before they set off. Although Santa Claus finds delivering presents easy, Winnie and Wilbur find it very difficult. As a result, Santa Claus remains behind time. He tearfully laments that he will not be able to deliver presents to many children that year. Using more powerful magic than she normally uses, Winnie makes the rest of the presents on Santa Claus' sled rise up into the air and fly to their proper recipients. As a result, no children wake up disappointed on Christmas Day. When they return home, Winnie and Wilbur open their presents. Wilbur gets everything on the list of things he wanted. There is only one present for Winnie but it is an enormous one. When she removes the wrapping paper from it, Winnie sees that it is a sled that is almost identical to the one that Santa Claus himself has. Winnie is able to make the sled fly by putting her broomstick underneath it. See also *''Winnie in Winter'' (1996) *"Old Santeclaus with Much Delight" (1821) *"A Visit from St. Nicholas" (1823) *"A Letter from Santa Claus" (1875) *''The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus'' (1902) *"A Kidnapped Santa Claus" (1904) *''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer'' (1939) *''Father Christmas'' (1973) *''Father Christmas Goes on Holiday'' (1975) *''The Polar Express'' (1985) *''Santa's Husband'' (2017) External links *[https://global.oup.com/education/product/9780192747372/region=international Winnie and Wilbur Meet Santa on the official Oxford University Press international website.] Category:Christmas stories Category:Childrens Books Category:Fantasy Category:Animals